Bruises
by Blood Dahlia
Summary: Glitch is being bullied by his classmates and parents, and refuses any help from his friends. As he spirals deeper into depression, will they be able to save him? Or is he too far gone...?
1. Chapter 1

Hello, dearies!

This is just something I whipped up while flying over to dublin. Yes, it's going to be dark, because hey-those type of stories are fun to write xP

**Warning**: there's going to be graphic Glitch-abuse, bad language and self-harm in this story. If you are not comfortable with these topics, then look awayyy .

* * *

Glitch winced when he finished his and Mo's latest routine. He faked a smile, secretly nursing his aching side as his mentor did one of his show-off moves, dissing the other team. The group surrounding them crowed with delight, all of their attention focused on the older dancer.

"Ow," he hissed under his breath, trying to slip around the crowd without being detected. The sharp pain in Glitch's side was steadily getting worse as the seconds passed, leaving him feeling weak and shaky.

Ugh, he should have just skipped the dance battle. If he had already been on the verge of passing out before dancing, what made him think he would he be fine to dance? _Dammit, I really need to think these things through…_

Glitch glanced back to where Mo was, seeing him with two girls on his arms. He was obviously flirting, and was going to be there for a while.

"And there goes my ride," Glitch uttered, limping down the sidewalk in the direction of his apartment.

"Yo! Glitch!"

Mo jogged up next to the waiting prodigy, the two girls watching him from afar with pouts on their glittery lips. Glitch reluctantly dredged up his usual happy façade, taking his hand away from his bruised side.

"What's up, lil' man?" Mo asked. "Why're you takin' off so fast? The sun's jus' startin' to set!"

"Sorry, Mo," Glitch apologized cheerily. "I just ain't feelin' so hot. There's a flu goin' 'round school, an' I think I caught it."

Mo's eyes widened marginally at the thought of getting sick. He could easily catch a cold off of someone, even if they were twenty feet away with a mask over their mouths.

"Then stay the hell away from me," Mo joked, holding his hands up. Glitch felt a twinge in his heart, but ignored it. _It was just a joke, stop gettin' all worked up. _"Well, hope ya feel better. Text me if you need me ta take ya to the doc or somethin'."

Glitch nodded tiredly and waved good-bye, turning around. As soon as he was sure Mo couldn't see his face, his smile vanished. He tried to walk with as little of a limp as possible until he rounded the corner.

Mo frowned slightly, watching Glitch disappear from his sight. Something wasn't right with his Nano-byte, but he couldn't place his finger on it. He'd been acting weird all day, and was he walking oddly?

Maybe he should ask the others, he mused. They would surely have noticed to, if it were anything big. All of the other dancers felt at least a small bit of protectiveness over the dancer, since he was the youngest of them all. Even the Lady-Gaga-esque freaks up at Glitterati had expressed some type of concern in their weird way towards Glitch when he hurt his wrist.

It can wait, though, Mo decided with a smirk as the two hotties attached themselves to his sides. He leisurely walked back to the party, throwing himself into the festivities.

Home again.

Glitch unlocked the door and entered the silent loft, not bothering to turn on the lights. It was plain and modern, with sparse furniture, with floor to ceiling windows and a staircase that led upstairs. The sun had completely set by now, making it pitch black.

The light from the hallway illuminated had a note on the table next to the door. Picking it up, Glitch quickly skimmed it.

_Darren and I will be out of the country for the next week or so. Don't do anything to the house or something that would make us have to come back. Money's in the kitchen._

It was unsigned, but Glitch could tell from the cursive that it was his foster mother. Crumpling the piece of paper up, he stuffed it into his pocket and kicked off his shoes, closing the door.

He worked on autopilot as he went into the large kitchen, turning on the overhead lights. Glitch mechanically grabbed a frozen pizza from the stainless steel freezer, and turned the oven on to the directed temperature. As he waited for it to preheat, he dragged his feet to the bathroom.

Blinking rapidly to get used to the blinding light, Glitch stared at himself in the mirror above the sink. He observed how his hair was dull and his eyes lacked life, lined with heavy bags. His skin was pale, and a bruise peeked from underneath his brightly colored shirt.

This was always the part Glitch hated the most. Holding his breath, he carefully pulled his shirt over his head, along with the bandana he always wore. Glitch examined all of the cuts and bruises that littered his chest, focusing closely on where his side was swollen and the strange marks around his neck.

"Ugh," Glitch winced when he gingerly poked his side. He sighed in relief when he deemed his ribs to only be bruised, not broken. If they had been broken, he would have been screwed.

The oven beeped, signaling the oven was ready. Throwing his shirt over his shoulder, the young dancer made his way to the kitchen, almost tripping over the couch in the dark. He let out a strangled cry of agony as his side was harshly jarred.

Digging his teeth into his bottom lip, Glitch pushed himself back up and shakily entered the kitchen. He turned off the oven and put the half-melted pizza back into the freezer. He just didn't feel like eating—it would hurt too much.

Glitch started to go to the stairs, but stopped in front of them. His eyes took in each of the stairs individually, debating silently in his head.

"Nope."

He turned around and went to the couch. He hated those stairs—on good days he always seemed to stumble or somehow hurt himself. The last thing Glitch wanted was to fall and have to call someone for help. People would ask too many questions.

His backpack was still by the door from that afternoon, when he had stopped at home before meeting up with Mo. He dragged it loosely at his side to the couch and turned on the light. He unzipped it and started his nightly routine of sifting through the hate notes.

'_Your dancing sucks!'_

'_Fuck you, you stupid fag!'_

'_I hope you go burn in hell and die!'_

Most of these were written over his class assignments or notes, which would no doubt get him in loads of trouble the next day. They all ranged from ridiculing his dance moves to made up things that everyone believed.

Glitch purposefully ripped out all of the pages that had writing on them. He crumpled them up and tossed them blindly in the direction of the trashcan. He knew that he had hopelessly missed, but couldn't seem to find the energy to care.

He shifted so he was on his stomach, face buried in one of the pillows. He jolted when he jarred his ribs, and carefully rubbed them, mind drifting to how they were hurt.

_A surprised cry left Glitch's mouth when hands grabbed the back of his jacket. They wrenched him into out of the crowded hallways of the school and into the boy's bathroom. He was thrown against one of the stonewalls, his head cracking against it loudly. Dizziness made it nearly impossible to concentrate on what the group of boys was saying._

"_Are you listening to us?" one of them snarled, punching Glitch in the stomach._

_The air whooshed out of Glitch's lungs, making him double over in pain and gasp desperately. He saw the next fist coming, and quickly, dropped to his knees, dodging it._

_It didn't work out as well he had hoped, sadly. It infuriated the boy even more, and he sent a barrage of punches and kicks raining down on Glitch's prone body. One of the others joined in, while everyone else cheered them on, urging the two to 'beat his skinny ass into the ground!'_

_He had tried to curl onto his stomach to protect himself, but they decided that they weren't having any of that. He was rolled over with a harsh kick to the shoulder. Another was delivered to his upper stomach, making a horrific, wet cracking sound ring above the jeering._

Glitch felt a sharp stab in his side just thinking about it. It was so intense that he had to practically crawl to the bathroom to find some type of painkiller.

_Through his bleary eyes, Glitch saw a vicious grin. "Let's see how you can dance with a broken rib," one of his attackers laughed._

_Glitch scrunched his face, fighting back the tears he could feel coming. He knew that if he allowed them to fall, he would be in for a world of unimaginable torment._

_The onlookers and the two beating Glitch started to lose interest. They filed out of the bathroom, making sure to throw in their exiting insults. _

_The last one did an extra harsh kick to his bruised ribs, muttering, "Fucking freak."_

Glitch didn't like how truthful those last two words were starting to sound.

* * *

I promise this story's gonna have a happy ending for our darling Glitch! Dx

As with every story, please review and favorite. I love you all~


	2. Chapter 2

**Helloooo, my lovelies! Here's the next chapter of my story :) Thank you guys so much for the wonderful reviews and favorites! I love you all!**

**GlitchAwesomeness: ohh, don't cryyy D: D:**

**Troublmaker: Awww, thank you! :D and lol ikr? Drama's awesome in stories x3**

**munchymaxter: Thanks for the review ^-^**

**Glitchlover66: I sowwiieeeeee ;A; don't cryyyy**

**CillyAzian: something good does happen to our glitch in this chapter, don't worry! :D**

**Dark Moonlight24: ah, thank you so muchh!**

**jazminewriter: I promise, he will! :)**

**glitchy'me: I knuu, everyone would totally kick those bullies' butts D: D: Thanks for the review x3**

**Hi-DefGirl0615: thanks for the review, hun~ ^-^**

* * *

The morning didn't bring any relief to Glitch. After spending the whole night wracked with pain and cursing the faux-pain relievers, Glitch had forced himself to crawl upstairs and get ready for the day. He had to save up his sick days for when he was in the hospital, not for when he was just sore.

Everything was ten times harder. Putting on clean clothes was near impossible—Glitch gave up after trying to pull off his shirt and just put on a sweatshirt. Since he couldn't take off his clothes, he couldn't take a shower, forcing him to have to deal with the sweat from last night's dance battle. He couldn't brush his teeth because the motion of his hand moving the toothbrush jarred his ribs too much. Styling his hair involved having to have his hands above his head, which, he had quickly found out, was a big no-no.

All in all, he looked like a complete mess.

"Thank the gods for elevators," he sighed to himself as leaned against the wall, listening to the hum of the engine as it took him to the ground level. The elevator made a ding, and he exited into the lobby.

Glitch focused uncomfortably on the ground, not meeting the eyes of the high-class residents that were waiting for their cars to pick them up. He raised his hood so his face was covered, hiding from their curious and indignant stares. He was the only child in the building, and was used to them getting worked up over a common-looking boy in their otherwise unpolluted environment.

"Mornin', Mr. Seung," the doorman said cheerily, opening the door for him. "Wow, you look like shit. Can I can you a taxi?"

Glitch shook his head, eyes to the ground. "I can just walk," he said casually. "I didn't sleep well last night."

"That sucks—Mr. Gregory! It's such a pleasure to see you again!"

Glitch was shooed to the side as the doorman opened the door for a much more important resident. Shaking his head sadly, Glitch hunched his back and walked in the direction of his school.

* * *

The day dragged on like every day usually did. He was thrown into lockers, insulted, had his things torn apart, and was suffering a sore shoulder because someone threw a basketball at him. He was a total mess, and all he wanted to do was crawl into his bed (or couch—stairs were evil) to sleep off the pain.

Whoever was up there seemed to have a different idea, obviously, because he received a text from Lil'T ordering him to meet her and her hyperactive friends for a beginning-of-the-weekend party.

Glitch lolled his head back, groaning in annoyance. He wanted to desperately ditch hanging out, but Lil'T had a habit of showing up at his doorstep if he didn't.

Taking as long as possible, Glitch dragged himself in the direction of the diner. He had been there many times before, since it was one of Lil'T's favorite hangouts.

"There you are, Glitch!" Lil'T waved frantically at him from the other side of the diner when he entered. "Where you been?"

Glitch shrugged, sitting down at the boisterous table, wincing at how it jarred his ribs. Lil'T didn't notice, though, as she ranted about how he was always late. He tuned her out as he surveyed the people at the table.

They were all of Lil'T's friends, various punks and dancers from around the area. They were all around her age, which was just a year over him, putting her at age 16. Most were indifferent to his presence, but occasionally one or two would throw him a smile. This shocked him to no end, and put him on edge. _Why are they being nice to me? What do they want?_

"You okay, Glitch?" Lil'T said, nudging him in his aching side. "You seem kinda out of it."

"I-I'm fine," Glitch gritted out, stealing a sip from her drink. It was mostly for show-they always used to steal each other's food. "I just had a bad day."

Lil'T frowned, dodging a french fry that was thrown by someone at the table. "Aw, I'm sorry, bro," she said, giving him a one-armed hug. "Anythin' I can do to help? Maybe order you a slice of cake?"

Lil'T knew that cake was one of Glitch's weaknesses. He could eat a whole thing by himself and still want more. If he ever got the chance, he could live off of it. He could only have it rarely-he had to save his money for important things, and it was insane to think that his Aunt and Darren would willingly buy him something. So, whenever he was having a bad day, Lil'T used to buy him a slice of cake. She hadn't done it in probably half a year, because...

Wait, why _hadn't_ she been getting him cake? He had obviously been at an all-time low, pulling away from his friends and not talking as much.

Ah, she'd think about it later. She'd make up for those six cake-less months by buying him cake now.

"I'm okay," Glitch said, avoiding her gaze.

Lil'T gasped and pulled away, looking horrified. "You, Glitch, King of Cake, don't want-are you _sick?_" She jerked forward and felt his forehead. "How can you not want cake? You always want cake!"

"I just don't want it right now," he mumbled, getting embarrassed.

"What the hell?" one of her friends whined. "You don't get me cake when I'm down!"

"Because I don't like you," she said, not looking at him. She wrapped her arm around Glitch again, shaking him. "Come onnnn, you know you want it."

"I'm not really in a cake mood…" Glitch said, shrugging and wincing. _Lies_, his stomach snarled at him. _Get me cake now!_

"I'll have it!" another girl said, sticking his hand in the air and waving it emphatically.

"It'll be chocolate…" Lil'T sang, ignoring their whining.

"Okay, fine," Glitch relented with a small smile. His stomach gurgled happily.

Lil'T grinned widely as she caught the attention of the waiter and ordered. A few minutes later the cake was set in front of him, warm and covered with melted chocolate. Everyone glared at him enviously, a few even ordering their own.

"Thanks," Glitch mumbled, shirking away from their stares.

Lil'T ruffled his hair and went back to chatting with her friends, ignoring him. Glitch scarfed down the cake in seconds—he hadn't eaten all day. Some random big kids had taken his lunch away from him, and he never ate breakfast.

Glitch stared longingly at where his cake had been moments before. He debated on whether he should order more food, but looking at how everyone was stealing each other's food, he decided against it. No doubt he wouldn't get any of it.

"I'm gonna head out," he said after awhile, tapping on Lil'T's shoulder.

The girl was too engrossed in another conversation to pay attention. She waved at him flippantly to go away, and Glitch silently took his leave, putting two dollars on the table to pay for the cake. Going unnoticed by anyone, he slipped out into the brutally cold outside air.

A half hour later, Lil'T frowned when she didn't see Glitch. She sat up straighter and looked around, trying to locate the young dancer.

"Hey, where'd nanobyte go?" Lil'T addressed the table. They frowned in confusion. "The Asian kid that was next to me."

"Dunno," a boy with a Mohawk shrugged. "Maybe he left."

Lil'T slumped down a bit, searching through her memory. It bugged and slightly disturbed her that she couldn't remember how long he had been gone.

Something had obviously been going on with her little dancer-bro. He had been quieter, and they had hung out less and less. His outgoing personality was nowhere in sight, a demure, sad one replacing it. He tried to act normal, but Lil'T had known him ever since he had moved to the States—she knew when he was faking something.

It plagued her even when she was back at home, hours later. She vowed that she would find the cause of her best friend's distress and make him happy again.

* * *

Glitch rolled his shoulder, hissing as he unlocked the door to his apartment. He should probably get it checked out, he mused as he flicked on the lights.

Ah, who was he kidding? When would he willingly go to a doctor?

A familiar scent washed over him as he took off his shoes, along with the sound of someone in the kitchen. He closed his eyes as he inhaled deeply the smell. Was that…kimchi stew?

Frowning to himself in confusion, he dropped his backpack and made a beeline for the kitchen. He felt relief was over him and he bounded the last few steps and wrapping his arms around the man in front of the stove, ignoring the pain he felt.

"_Grandpa_," Glitch said in a murmur, switching seamlessly into Korean as he tightly hugged him.

"_Ah_!" Grandpa said in surprise, turning around. He scowled at his youngest grandson, but it held no malice. "_Oh, there you are. Don't sneak up on me like that. You'll give me a heart attack, boy_!" Glitch chuckled lightly, letting go of his grandfather's small form.

"_What're you doing here_?" he asked, sitting down at the island.

"_I had to call your idiot aunt for something, and she told me she was in France for the next few weeks and you were alone_," he explained as he stirred the contents of the pot. _"I figured that you were too stupid to actually cook for yourself so I decided to come and make you dinner. And what do you do? Come home late! Shame on you, making your old grandfather wait for you_!"

"_But I didn't know you were coming, Grandpa_," Glitch said with a half-grin. Grandpa turned around and cuffed him on the side of his head.

"_No back-talking_!" he barked. Huffing in annoyance as Glitch laughed, he turned around and went back to cooking. "_The food will be ready in ten minutes. Just sit there and ice the bruise on your eye_." Glitch started uncomfortably, self-consciously putting his hand over it and biting his lip.

"_Another fight_?" Grandpa asked reprovingly, watching him with dark eyes.

Glitch grinned sheepishly, grabbing a bag of frozen peas from the freezer and sitting down again. "_The other guy looks worse_," he lied.

Grandpa looked at him, unconvinced. Glitch forced an innocent smile, which turned into a grimace as the bag touched his shoulder—he figured that he might as well ice what hurt the most, since the elder already knew he was hurt.

Grandpa grunted and went back to cooking.

As Glitch sat, nursing his various aches and pains, he rested his head on his good arm that was resting on the counter. He observed his grandfather cook through lidded eyes, being lulled into doze by the warmth and familiarity of the scene.

It had been months since the last time he had seen his Grandpa. He'd missed the old man with an aching heart, along with his grandmother. They'd always catch a flight from Vancouver whenever they could, making sure he was treated with the care that was so rare and foreign to Glitch.

Grandpa had even started helping out at his old friend's teashop, which had shops where Glitch was and in Vancouver. This allowed them to see each other even more often, and for Glitch to have a safe house when things got too bad with Eun and Darren.

Glitch sighed to himself, giving up the losing battle against his eyelids and allowed them to close. When Grandpa turned around, Glitch was fast asleep.

Grandpa slapped Glitch on top of the head again. "_Awake_!" he snapped. "_I didn't come all the way out here for you to sleep. And this is how you repay me for making your favorite dish_?"

"_Alright, alright, I'm up_," Glitch said, jolting up and into a sitting position as the food was set out in front of him.

The two relatives sat next to each other, conversing little as they ate and enjoyed the comfortable silence.

* * *

**Alright, so some happiness for our Glitch, yeah? :) But this is just the calm before the storm ;-;**

**As usual, please review and tell me what you think!**

**Goodbye for now, my beauties~**


	3. Chapter 3

**Woot! Another chapter! :D sorry it took so long, I've been distracted lately ^_^" but I promise the next one should be up in a day or two! I have it completely planned out :3**

* * *

**Troublmaker**: Thank you so much! :D

**jazminewriter**: eh-heh-heh...things're gonna get dark again for him...(don't hurt me!)

**Dark Moonlight24**: Thanks for reviewing! :D *hugs*

**Guest**: O.O...please don't haunt mee! XD

**munchymaxter**: The huge impact is coming next chapter :)

**Hi-DefGirl0615**: Thank youuu~!

**WARNING**: SEVERE abuse coming up, including: burning, verbal harassment and mean notes :( (I'm sorry! It has to be done! Dx)

* * *

Glitch clenched his fists, nails digging into his skin. He bit his lip so hard it bled, trying hard to ignore the stares and whispers of the people around him. He stared down at the crude drawing on his desk in between his arms.

The drawing was of a stick figure representing Glitch hanging from a rope with X's for eyes and was crying blue streams of tears. Knives were sticking out of his body, crimson blood squirting out. In big block letters at the top was written: 'I HOPE YOU DIE.'

Most of the watchers started snickering, knowing what was written, while others sent him pitying looks. The ones who had thrown it at him high-fived, and the teacher at the front of the room was too engrossed in his book to care.

Swallowing thickly, Glitch calmly picked up the piece of paper and stood up from his seat. All eyes were glued on him as he walked to the trashcan next to the teacher's desk—he looked around his book and glared at Glitch—and walked back to his seat. While he had been gone two more notes were neatly folded on his binder.

Glitch didn't bother looking at these notes. He simply set them in the corner and went back to doing his math. Someone had ripped out the page that had his work on it, so he had to start at the beginning of the assignment. _And I was almost done, too_.

_RIIIIIIING!_

The last bell of the day echoed through the school, making all of the students hop out of their seats and rush to their lockers. Glitch was one of the few who were reluctant to get out of school, knowing it would result in daily after-school beatings, painful dance practices and an empty house.

Head bowed, Glitch wandered through the busy hallways to his locker. As usual, the actual locker was completely hidden underneath the notes that were taped and written on it.

Glitch huffed tiredly, leaning his head against the cool metal of one of the lockers next to him. He was too tired to deal with having to scrub his locker down right now. He hated to make the janitors' jobs harder than they already were, but he couldn't bring himself to have to read all of the hatred from them.

He awkwardly opened his locker, grabbing only what was necessary. Stuffing it into bag, he zipped it up and closed the paper-covered door. He walked with his head low out of the building with the last few stragglers left in the building.

He stopped outside of the door, scanning the nearly empty school grounds. He didn't see anyone that would try to jump him, but he kept his guard up, flicking his hood over his head. They had a habit of jumping up randomly right when he thought he was safe.

Which is exactly what happened.

He was halfway home, daydreaming. It was the way he always walked, which wasn't the smartest, thinking back on it. That was probably how they knew that he would be there.

Three boys popped up practically out of nowhere, one of them delivering a swift punch into his stomach. Glitch was unable to move at the blinding pain that his bruised ribs caused him at the rough punch. Tears of pain blurred his vision as they forced him behind the building he had been walking past.

"Thought we'd let you have the day off?" they jeered. "You're such a fucking retard."

Glitch bit his lip as they shoved his head into the concrete ground. The skin on his forehead was scratched, blood staining the ground red under him. His sleeves were rolled up, much to his confusion. They held his arms straight out, his struggling going was at least half of their sizes.

He thought to himself blankly, _What are they…_

Glitch's unspoken question was answered when he heard a click and a portion of his arm started to get hotter. He howled in pain as his tormentor with the lighter held the flame against his bare arm, laughing as if it was the funniest thing in the world.

At random intervals the lighter would be moved to a different section of his arm. Even after the skin on both of his arms was covered in multiple burns that made his skin look polka-dotted, they didn't stop. Glitch cried out hoarsely, the tears he had been so desperately trying to hold back finally falling. A hand was slapped over his mouth to shut him up.

"Aw, look, guys," the owner of the hand simpered, jerking Glitch's head up by his hair so they could see. "I think we were a little to hard on him!" They crowed with laughter as his head was dropped back on the ground.

Glitch lay limply on the ground, jolting helplessly with every new burn that was forced on him. He stared unseeing at something in the distance, the tears flowing nonstop and mixing in with the blood from his scraped forehead. His breath came out in short puffs that hurt his ribs.

"Dammit," the one with the lighter snarled after awhile, throwing the small plastic rectangle against the sidewalk distastefully. "It's outta gas."

The other two growled in annoyance, reluctantly loosening their grips on Glitch. The youngest dancer of Hi-Def's burn-covered arms fell onto the ground, unmoving like the rest of him.

"You're lucky," a guttural voice growled into his ear. "That lighter saved your sorry ass."

Glitch didn't respond, too focused on trying to make the pain go away. The owner of the voice muttered something about how Glitch wasn't any fun, before finally leaving with the others.

He waited until they were gone before he even attempted to move. His fingers bent slightly, resulting in his seared flesh to ache and burn as if the lighter was still there. After the first wave of pain was done, he slowly pushed himself up. He coughed, raggedly breath. He shakily wiped off the drool off of his chin and sat up shakily.

Cringing, Glitch looked at his arms. He wasn't an expert when it came to burns, but they didn't look too bad. He'd have to Google how to deal with them when he got home.

"Oh God," he shuddered, arms trembling as they loosely wrapped around his torso.

The pain was impossible to describe. The burns felt like they were still underneath the flame of the lighter, and the world spun uncontrollably. His ribs were screaming at him with every breath, while he was dizzy from having his head slammed into the sidewalk.

Leaning heavily against the wall, Glitch managed to push himself onto unsteady legs. Once he was sure he could stand by himself, he wiped the blood from his forehead, picked up his backpack and made his way back to his apartment.

Dirty and pitying looks were thrown in Glitch's direction as he unsteadily walked down the sidewalk. No one asked if he was all right, or if he needed any help, even when he tripped and could barely pull himself back into a standing position. Everyone just figured he was a drug user or had been in some type of gang-related fight.

By the time he reached his apartment building, he knew that his grandfather would be furious. It was about six, and he had promised that he would be home around two, since it was an early out at school. _Maybe I can sneak in from the back…_

Glitch's plan was immediately thwarted when he saw his grandfather standing by the entrance. He dragged Glitch towards the rarely used back door, which was on the side of the building. _Fuck_.

"_Where have you been_?' Grandpa asked, his arms crossed and face furious.

Glitch shrugged, head bowed in shame. Grandpa's work-worn hand nudged his chin up, and the dancer's elder inspected the bruises and scrapes. He also pulled Glitch's sleeves up and stared at the multiple burn marks.

"_It's nothing_," Glitch mumbled, pulling his sleeves back down.

"_That's not nothing_!" Grandpa argued. "_Who's doing this to you_?"

"_It's nothing_," Glitch repeated, refusing to meet his grandfather's searching eyes.

"_Stop lying_," Grandpa snapped, holding up multiple scraps of paper. "_I found these while I was waiting for you to come home_." Glitch felt a sinking feeling when he saw that they were some of the many death threats and insults he received on a daily basis.

"_Did you go through my stuff_?" Glitch asked angrily, snatching them out of his hands and stuffing them into his pocket. Grandpa stopped him before he could, though, and put them back into his own pocket.

"_No, they were in the trashcan_," Grandpa responded. "_Boy, why didn't you tell me about this_?" His voice had gone soft, edged with concern for his favorite grandson. "_I could've helped. You didn't have to suffer through this alone_."

Glitch shied away from his grandfather's touch, hands clenching. "_Because I didn't want to disappoint you_!" he screamed. "_It's shameful that I can't make them stop by myself, and that I have to look to other people for help_!"

"_Boy_…"

"_I'll be home tonight_!"

Glitch vehemently ignored the pain that was coursing through his body and the cries to come back as he ran away from his grandfather. He didn't focus on where he was going, just ran as fast and as far as his stiff legs could take him.

* * *

Grandpa stared at the direction that his grandson had ran. His body was aching for him to run after him, but he knew that he would end up hurting himself and doing more harm than good. He was simply too old.

The pain he felt for his grandson made his chest hurt. How could Glitch think that Grandpa would be ashamed of him? He could never be ashamed of his wonderful grandson, he loved him too much. Even if Glitch became a wanted criminal, Grandpa would still love him and care for him.

He searched his memory, trying to think of where Glitch would run off. Didn't he say something about a friend owning a yacht? Yes! Him and his friend—Mo, wasn't it?—liked to hang out at the docks with their other dancing friends.

Grandpa zipped up his jacket to fight off the biting wind and made his way purposefully towards the docks.

* * *

"Get me another smoothie," Miss Aubrey whined from her place by the poolside, shaking her empty cup.

"Do it yo' self," Taye said, throwing a few more poker chips into the large stack in the center. "We busy."

All of the dancers—excluding Lil'T and Glitch, who had school, and the Glitterati crew—were lounging around Miss Aubrey's yacht. The large glass doors were open so that the boys and Taye, who were playing poker, could still talk to Miss Aubrey and Emilia, who were sunbathing and swimming.

Miss Aubrey pouted, before smiling when a butler came scuttling up with a new drink, eager to keep his boss's daughter happy.

"Ha!" Mo crowed victoriously as everyone else at the table groaned. "I win, bitches!" Angel and Taye cursed colorfully as Mo moved all of the chips to his own pile, cackling gleefully.

"Excuse me, sir," the butler came up, tapping Mo on the shoulder. "But you have a visitor."

"Aw, sweet!" he said cheerily. "Who is it? A hot chick?"

"Um, no," the butler said. "A man named Mr. Seung, claiming to be Mr. Glitch's grandfather. Would you like me to send him away, sir?"

Mo scrabbled out of his chair, cursing loudly. He quickly started fiddling with his clothes and took of his head. "Hell naw! Quick, quick, let him in!"

"Why are you freaking out?" Bodie asked him blankly, watching as his fellow dancer fussed over his appearance.

"Glitch nevah talks 'bout his family, at all," Mo explained. "Dis is the first time I've even heard about a fam'ly member, an' I wanna make a good impression."

He snapped his head up and stood as straight as possible as the elderly man walked in. He had an air about him that was regal and stern, examining the room he was in. Everyone else in the room also stood up, eager to meet their best friend's grandfather.

"Uh, hello, sir," Mo said awkwardly, heart beating rapidly. He held out his hand. "Um, I'm Mo. Glitch's friend."

He cringed underneath Mr. Seung's calculating stare as he sized the other man up. Mo vehemently wished he hadn't worn his usual street clothes. The elder man's face gave none of his emotions or thoughts away.

"Nice to meet you," he said shortly, shaking Mo's hand firmly. Mo inwardly sighed, relieved he had passed his inspection.

Each one of the dancers introduced themselves politely, shaking his hand and returning the bows he gave them. After they were done, Mo quickly ushered him into the seat beside him, racing to the mini-bar and grabbing a glass of water for him.

"I apologize for coming so abruptly," Mr. Seung said, sipping his water delicately. "I would have called in advance, yet I only had the address."

"It's perfectly fine," Emilia hastily assured him,

"I hate to sound rude," Miss Aubrey said, watching from the minibar, "but why are you here?"

"Aubrey!" Angel hissed, sending her a warning look.

"No, no, I understand," Mr. Seung said calmly, sipping his water. He calmly turned his attention to Mo, who was fidgeting in his seat. "I've come to talk to you about Jae-Kwang."

They all stared at him blankly. "Glitch," Mr. Seung clarified. Everyone immediately understood, and he muttered something in Korean under his breath.

"I'm worried about his welfare at school and with my"—he grimaced—"daughter. But before we get into the long story of our many family issues, I will start with the school."

He pulled out a stack of papers from his pockets and set them on the table. Curiously, everyone picked one up and then gasped at the horrific pictures and notes, all negatively directed at Glitch.

"What are these?" Emilia asked in horror.

"Only a few of the many notes Glitch's classmates have been giving him every day," Mr. Seung said, sadness filling his gaze. "I do not know how long this has gone on for, but for at least a year. Judging from the bruises and burn marks—"

"Burn marks?" Mo and Bodie gasped in horror.

Mr. Seung nodded. "He came home today three hours late with his arms covered in burns. And then I believe he has hurt his side, judging from the way he's been limping lately."

"Oh my God," Aubrey whispered shakily, a hand resting on her lips as her eyes watered. She stared at the note in front of her, which graphically depicted how someone wanted to rape Glitch before slitting his throat.

"These aren't even the worse," Mr. Seung said bitterly. "Did you all notice nothing with Glitch?"

Mo felt himself get choked up, which hadn't happened in years. "No," mumbled. "I-I didn't notice anything."

"He's been very distant lately," Bodie explained, putting a comforting hand on Mo's shoulder. "And you know how well he can when something's botherin' him." Mr. Seung smiled sourly in agreement.

"But what about his parents?" Angel spoke up. "I know Glitch lives with them—"

"He lives with a pathetic excuse of an Aunt and her idiotic husband," Mr. Seung suddenly snarled, slamming the glass down. "They could care less about what happens to him, and beat him into bloody pulps when he makes the smallest or errors. And no matter how many times I try to take custody of him, they pull strings and keep him, those—"

He cursed in rapid Korean for a few minutes before regaining his posture. They all stared at him with matching expressions of horror.

Finally, Mr. Seung spoke again. "I'm too old to do what needs to be done," he said tiredly. "I don't feel like calling on my old contacts from Korea to set these punks straight, so I found you all." He was quiet for a moment, and everyone started when they realized he was crying.

Taye reached for his calloused hand, giving it a comforting squeeze.

"You don't even have to ask," Miss Aubrey said with a smile. "Of course we will.

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**That's it for this chapter :) Please review and/or favorite, if you would be so kind~**

**Now, with my kitten in my lap and my laptop next to me, I shall start the next chapter! Huzzah!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hello, everyone! :) Sorry it took so long-I just left Ireland after staying there for a month with my dad and his girlfriend, and I wanted to spend as much time as possible with them, since I won't see them until next year :(**

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**munchymaxter: **Thanks for the review~ ^_^

**Hi-DefGirl0615: **ikr? You just wanna make them die painful deaths O

**GlitchAwesomeness: **please don't cryyy ;A;

**icyhot87: **why are you cryinggg? *hugs* and thank you so much :)

**glitchy'me: **Hahaha we shall see what the wonderfully evil Miss Aubrey has in store for the bullies~

**smrtangel: **Thank you so much! :D

**HiDefFreak: **Of course not! D: As cliched as it is, I try to make sure my stories have some sort of happy ending :)

**WARNING**: Not much for this chapter, except for descriptive gore. I can't say much else without giving things away...

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Grandpa and Glitch had rules when the elder man came to stay.

They were simple things: Glitch had to do his schoolwork before going to his friends, do his chores when he was asked to, respect Grandpa… They were simple things, and Glitch obediently followed them.

Except this time, he supposed.

One of the main rules was to be home before nine. Grandpa didn't like having to stay up late, waiting for Glitch to come home. On rare occasions, he would stay out later, but he would always check in beforehand.

Grandpa checked the clock on the wall for what had to be the twentieth time. It was nearing on eleven, and there was still no sight of his green-eyed grandson. His anger at having the dancer ignore the rule had morphed into fear and worry as more and more time passed.

He grabbed the house phone that was on the table next to him and dialed the number of Mo as fast as his stiff, old fingers would allow. Him and the rest of Glitch's friends had exchanged phone numbers before he had returned home in Miss Aubrey's personal taxi. He'd already called all of the girls, who had no clue where he was.

He waited impatiently for the person on the other end and sighed happily when it clicked.

"Mr. Seung?" Mo's slurred voice filtered through. It was obvious he had been asleep. "Is something wrong?"

Mo and the rest of the boys were sprawled out in Bodie's bedroom, trying to catch some sleep before the huge dance competition the next day. It was a tradition that they always had—hang out Friday night, and then dance most of Saturday.

"I'm sorry to be calling you so late at night," he said politely. "But is Jae-Kwong with you?" There was a confused silence on the other end—Mo's half-asleep brain was too confused to remember Glitch's real name.

"Glitch," Mr. Seung clarified.

"Oh," Mo said, and then immediately turned serious. "He's not home yet?" He sat up, fumbling to turn on the light, making all of the boys in the room groan loudly.

"No, I was hoping he was with you," Grandpa said fretfully. "Do you know if any of the boys have heard from him? I already called the women, they didn't know where he was. Is he staying at your house?"

Mo felt his heart slowly working its way down into his stomach. "No," he murmured. "H-he's not here." There was silence on the other end.

Mo hurriedly rolled out of bed and grabbed his hoodie, zipping it up. "I'll go out and try 'n find 'em," he said hurriedly, searching for his shoes. "He shouldn't be out 'lone this late, 'specially when it's freezing outside."

"I will do the same," Mr. Seung said. "Call me as soon as you find him, yes?"

"Of course," Mo said before hanging up and tying his shoes onto his feet.

"The hell are you doing?" Bodie mumbled in his pillow, while Angel looked at him blearily from his spot on the floor.

"Glitch's missing, I gotta go find 'im," Mo said.

The other two snapped awake, their tiredness forgotten. Both of the dancers started pulling on their shoes and warmer clothing before they left with Mo to go find Glitch.

In Glitch's apartment, Grandpa pushed himself out of the chair, grabbing his coat. He zipped it up and grabbed a hat for his balding head and a scarf—it could be brutally cold in the city at night, and the last thing he wanted to do was catch a cold.

"Mr. Seung," the man behind the security desk stood up. "How are you tonight?"

"Fine, fine," he muttered, too preoccupied with thoughts of Glitch.

"You're going out?" he has in surprise. "You really shouldn't, you know. This neighborhood is dangerous at night."

Mr. Seung turned his piercing dark gaze on security guard, making him flinch. "I do not need you to tell me what I should or should not do," he growled.

"Y-yes, you're right, I'm so sorry, sir. I didn't mean to offend you or try to order you around—"

Mr. Seung cut off the scared man's babbling by shoving open the door and storming out into the cold street.

Meanwhile, Glitch sighed as he paid for his latte at the coffee shop he was in. He'd managed to find one that was open all night, and had decided to camp out there for the night.

Flopping down at a near the window, he groaned and rested his head heavily in his hands.

He had no idea what he was going to do. He couldn't hide out here for the rest of his life—he'd eventually have to return to his house and face Grandpa. There was no doubt in the teenager's mind that he would have to explain everything about his encounters with his classmates, and even the mere thought of having to do that made him want to throw up.

Mulling over his thoughts, Glitch sipped at his drink, not caring how it scorched his tongue and throat as he swallowed it down. If anything, it was a good distraction from thoughts of his grandfather. He drank it faster, wincing at the pain it caused.

The last of the scalding hot liquid was swallowed, leaving his mouth aching to be cooled down. He dully ignored thoughts of getting a cold drink, rubbing his forehead.

An hour or so later, Glitch decided that it would be best to leave. The barista behind the counter was giving him odd looks, as she thought he was a runaway. Even though she wasn't doing anything yet, he wasn't going to wait around for her to turn him into the cops.

He forced a cheery smile as he threw away his empty cup. "Have a nice night," he muttered to her, exiting the coffee shop.

He stopped outside the door, trying to think of somewhere to go. Going to his friends would just make them ask questions, which was something Glitch wouldn't be able to handle in the mindset he was in. It was too cold to sleep or stay outside for a long time, but he couldn't remember many of the places that weren't clubs that would be open this late.

Glitch was thinking deeply when he heard his real name being called.

"Jae-Kwong!"

Glitch's head snapped up in horror to see his grandfather standing on the other side of the empty street, his hand slightly raised. When their eyes met, Glitch felt his stomach tighten. He started running down the sidewalk, desperate to get away.

Oh no he wasn't. Grandpa had been looking for Glitch for hours, even getting his friends to help. There was no way he was going to allow him to simply run off again.

With surprising speed for someone his age, Grandpa jogged across the street, yelling for Glitch to stop. The teenager didn't look at him, tears already brimming in his eyes at how he was being so rude to elder. He should stop like he was telling him to do, but he couldn't face the disappointment—

There was the sound of squealing tires, followed by a sickening thunk. It was followed by the sound of a body collapsing on the ground, and a car driving off.

Glitch whipped around, staring in horror. He sprinted in the opposite direction he had been going, rushing over to the crumpled body in the side of the road.

The sight of his grandfather lying in the road would be one that would haunt him for the rest of his life. One of his legs was awkwardly splayed, and the wrinkly skin covering his body was scratched up and bleeding, a few pieces of stray rocks from the road still lodged in some of the cuts. His hat had flown from his head, and his scarf was almost completely off of his neck. He coughed, and blood stained his mouth.

"Oh shit, oh god, no, grandpa," Glitch gasped, kneeling next to Grandpa's body.

People were starting to come out of the buildings, wondering what was happening. Someone yelled for an ambulance, but Glitch was too focused.

Grandpa looked up at Glitch with what seemed to be surprise, eyes wandering down to their interlocked hands. Dimly he heard Glitch's voice, and focused on it through the fuzz that was getting worse.

"_Just—just hang on_," Glitch yelled in Korean. "_An ambulance is c-coming. You're gonna to be alright_!"

"_No_…" Grandpa murmured, smiling sadly with bloody lips. "_We both…know I'm…not_."

"_Please, please, hold on a bit longer until they come_," he begged. "_I can't—y-you can't leave me_!" Tears were pouring down his face. "_Please! You're the only family I have_."

Grandpa's eyes were fading. "_Your_…" He broke into a coughing fit, which wrenched at Glitch's heart. "_Friends…are your family. Look…after Grandma, will you? She'll need…lots of…"_ He never got to finish his statement.

Glitch stared down in horror, desperately feeling the bloodied neck for a pulse. He waited a few moments, before hunching over Grandpa.

"Oh god, no, no, no, please, no, don't leave me…"

The sirens in the distance grew steadily louder, but Glitch stayed where he was, rocking back and forth and still holding Grandpa's rapidly cooling, lifeless hand.

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**I feel so mean right now...;-;**

**But I swear! Glitch will end up happy, even if things are looking grim right now!**

**On a completely separate note, I finally got a tumblr today~ After being pressured by my friends for months, I caved XD If you wanna see some of my drawings, then I have the link on my profile.**

**I love you all so much! The next chapter will be much longer!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Relatively short and filler-ish :/ the next part shall be longer!**

**So, the other day I accidentally let it slip to my girlfriend that I had an FF account. So now she knows all of the horrible, geeky things that go through my mind. I'M SO EMBARRASSED I CAN'T TAKE ITTTT. But I'll deal lol.**

**glitchy'me: **oh ho ho...I like that idea...:3 lol

**I Never Knew You: **I'M SORRY! I SWEAR THAT THE BULLIES WILL HAVE THEIR ASSES HANDED TO THEM BEFORE THIS STORY IS DONE!

**GlitchAwesomeness: **I swear he doesss! Why does no one trust me?! XD

**DancinGamer: **thank you~! :D

**SoKuGirl0615: **nooo! no crying! D: *hugs tightly*

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The police gathered what information they could from witnesses and Glitch about the car that had hit Mr. Seung. Only a few of the license plate numbers and what the car looked like were shared, but they promised Glitch that it would be enough to catch whoever had hit his grandfather.

But then it got worse. The policewoman who had been talking to him saw the beginnings of bruises on his arms. With Glitch's reluctant consent, they took him to a separate room and examined his body.

When they asked him who was hurting him, he answered truthfully. He told them everything in gruesome detail, sharing every single beating he'd ever received since he was a toddler. They wrote everything down and took names, taking pictures of his body.

Afterwards, they asked him if there was anyone who could come pick him up. Someone to look after him until his grandmother came. Glitch dazedly murmured Mo's cell phone number, and the policewoman excused herself to call him, leaving the teenager to sit by himself.

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see a redheaded whispering to her brown-haired friend. They were staring at him, but they had sympathy in their gazes. Other people were also staring, making his skin crawl and itch uncomfortably. Glitch felt pain well up in his throat and he angled his head away so he didn't have to see them, swallowing hard.

"Hey."

His eyes snapped up to see that the redhead in her late twenties was now sitting next to him. Tattoos covered her arms and throat, and she wore a white tank top with cargo pants. High-heeled boots came up to her calves, and her ears were pierced multiple times.

"You ok?" she asked, her brown eyes wide and earnest.

"I'm fine," Glitch spat out with venom. He immediately felt guilty—it wasn't her fault that he was so angry. "U-um—" he started to apologize, but she held up her hand to stop him.

"No need to apologize," she said smoothly. "I just wanted ta help ya if I could. I heard some of the coppers over there gossipin' 'bout what happened." Glitch felt moisture start to gather in his eyes at the mention of his grandfather.

"Sometimes it's easier to talk to a stranger," the redhead pointed out, sliding an arm around his shoulders.

Glitch was silent for a moment, before he finally looked up at her helplessly. "They're not going to help," he said, referring to the police.

"With the assholes who're beatin' you up?" she asked.

Glitch shook his head. "With my parents," he clarified in a whisper. "They'll just call their lawyers and get out of this with a slap on the wrist. It's happened before, and I ended up loosing so much blood I nearly died." He shook under her arm, and she squeezed his shoulders.

"Then go live with someone else," she offered. "Like another family member, or a friend."

"My parents won't let me leave," he murmured. "They think it would look bad and ruin their reputation, and the gods forbid that to happen."

"Run away?" she offered.

"No where to go," he murmured.

"I'm sure your friends would hide ya," she said surely.

"No they wouldn't. They'd feel too bad when my parents pretend to cry for me to come home on the news." She was silent now, at a loss.

"Well, shit," she sighed. "I suppose me killing them wouldn't really help?" He chuckled dryly in response, head lolling loosely against his chest. She rubbed his arm sympathetically.

"You're free to go," a policeman told the girl when he came up, jerking his head at the front door.

The girl moved away, rummaging around in her purse. She pulled out a scrap of paper and a pen, scribbling something down. She stuffed it into Glitch's hand.

"That's my number," she said. "Call me if you need someone to talk to, or just need to get away from everything for a few hours." She hugged him tightly, and Glitch smelled the heavy scent of gasoline and oil.

"Um," he blurted out when she stood up to leave. "Y-you didn't tell me your name." The redhead raised a perfectly manicured eyebrow at him.

"It's only polite to tell me yours first," she ordered, adjusting the bag on her shoulder.

"Glitch," he said, looking up at her.

"Interesting name," she mused. She then grinned, revealing dimples on her cheeks. "I like it. I'm Rocket, Glitch."

She grabbed his arm and gave it one last squeeze before strutting out of the police department. On the way out, she pretended to take a punch at a policeman, making him flinch violently. Rocket's laughter faded as she walked out the front door, blowing him a kiss as she went.

Glitch sat there quietly for a while after that, staring down at the numbers on the paper. He slowly slid it into one of his many pockets, leaning back against the chair. He stayed like that, staring at a random point on the wall until Mo came rushing in.

Mo did everything that was necessary to take Glitch home with him, answering the questions about the dancer's home and school life. He told them as fast as he could, antsy to get Glitch next to him so he could hug him.

After what seemed like hours, the policewoman finally brought Glitch over to Mo. The dancer looked up at his mentor, his expression tired and heartbroken.

"Hi," Mo whispered, uncertain of what to do.

"Hi," Glitch choked out back, wrapping his arms around Mo's middle.

The older man hugged him tightly back, running his hands up and down his back soothingly. He waited until Glitch let go before leading him out to the waiting car. After he was buckled into the passenger seat, Mo smoothly pulled out of the parking lot and rushed home.

Mo's apartment was plain, with a sparsely yet nicely furnished living room that was connected to the kitchen. A hallway split off from the main room, leading to Mo's bedroom, a guest bedroom and a bathroom.

Glitch numbly allowed himself to be pushed onto the fluffy couch, looking around the room.

"You want something to drink? Eat?" Mo asked as he kicked off his shoes, flitting around the kitchen. Glitch didn't respond. "I'll make hot chocolate," he muttered decisively, knowing his friend had a sweet tooth.

Mo made two cups of it before going back to the couch, where Glitch hadn't moved an inch. He sat down close, handing one of the warm cups to Glitch. He stared at it blankly before taking a small sip. He took another taste before he sniffed, breathe hitching as he gulped down air greedily.

"I-I can't br-breathe…"

Mo hurriedly grabbed Glitch's cup before he could drop it and put it down on the table. He wrapped him in a hug, gently rocking him back and forth.

"It's my fault," Glitch gasped, pushing away from Mo. "He was crossing the street to catch me. If I had just come home on time, or if I'd stayed a couple more seconds—"

"Glitch—" Mo tried to break in, refusing to let Glitch go.

"—it should've been me—"

"_Glitch!_" Mo said in dismay. He forced Glitch to look him straight in the eyes. "It was _not_ your fault. How're you s'posed to know dat some idiot would be goin' thirty miles over the speed limit an' run a stoplight?"

"Still!" he yelled, voice hoarse. "It was 'cause I was running away that he got hit!" He cried harder, the sound heart wrenching and broken.

"Please, Glitch," Mo begged, tears welling up. "It ain't your fault. Please, please believe that. What's gramma gonna say if she hears you sayin' that when she comes?"

Glitch didn't respond, hugging Mo tighter while he cried. He knew that his mentor was right, but he couldn't find it in himself to fully accept it yet. He let himself be held as he cried his eyes out for hours.

Eventually Glitch calmed his crying down to sniffling and hitched breathing. Mo didn't let go, rocking the teenager back and forth and stroking his hair as if he were a small child.

Glitch's breathing slowed down, and his eyelids were weighed down with exhaustion. He relaxed the death grip he had on Mo's shirt, and leaned against him as he finally succumbed to sleep.

Mo waited for a few moments before he eased Glitch's arms off of him. He guided the sleeping teenager into a laying position, giving him a pillow to cling on to. Grabbing the blanket on the arm of the couch, he carefully placed it over him and went into the kitchen, taking out his cellphone.

Miss Aubrey answered on the second ring, sounding frazzled and on edge. "Is everything okay?" she asked quickly.

"He's not physically hurt, if that's what you mean," Mo responded tiredly, sitting down at the table.

Miss Aubrey groaned in worry as Emilia cut into the conversation. "Tell us what happened."

Mo summed up everything he'd been told at the police station, leaving out the unnecessary details and explaining how heartbroken Glitch was. He had to stop a few times for the dancers on the other end to calm down, their angry and horrified questions and yells hard to talk over.

"He's asleep right now," Mo said, looking over at the snoring form on the couch. "It wouldn't be a good idea to come over now."

"Me an' Bodie have work," Emilia groaned.

Lil'T had a show choir competition until the evening, so it was decided that she would come with Emilia and Bodie and then everyone else would come sometime during the day. They didn't want to overwhelm Glitch by showing up all at once.

"Call us if anything happens," Taye told Mo as they neared the end of their conversation.

"Give him our condolences," Angel broke in.

"I will," Mo assured them.

He hung up and went back to sitting in the kitchen, watching over Glitch as he rested.

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**Okay, so I can't decide: Glitch is going to have his older cousin stay with him for a bit. Should this cousin be a boy or a girl? Review and tell me what you think~ x3**


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